More wildlife wonders!

[Dennis]

Hello,

Here are a few more photos revealing the amazing beauty of various creatures as captured in our back garden, Roma Street Parklands and Moreton Island in the last few weeks.

The Oyster Catcher (Moreton Island) has just extracted its bill from plunging it deep into the soft sand. At the end of it, you can see an (unfortunate) Soldier Crab; a luckier one appears in the next shot.

I hope that you enjoy them and thanks for looking.:)

Cheers

Dennis

[supernova1965]

They are all great but I really love the Soldier Crab a wonderful image:thumbsup:

[astroron]

I love your wild life pictures Dennis :D
#6 The dragon fly is brilliant :thumbsup:
Cheers

[jjjnettie]

You do have a knack for this Dennis.
I always enjoy your photos.

[rcheshire]

Dennis. You do this with regularity. The cormorant - awesome. It's time to cough up the details...:D

[ChrisM]

Dennis - they are all excellent! Especially the crab and cormorant. Did you use motor drive for that?

Chris

[gary]

Thank you Dennis,

A staggering absolutely first class collection!

Shows us what is possible when the right gear is combined
with someone with incredible levels of skill and dedication.

[rcheshire]

The cormorant wings are beautifully captured showing the dynamics of low speed high lift flight. Notably, feathers that curl up as the airflow rotates and separates on the upper surface of the wing and back. The tip feathers and naturally occurring slot on the leading edge of the wing controls the boundary layer to prevent stalling. The raised smaller feathers increase camber over the wing, and so on. Just beautiful:)

[Paddy]

Absolutely stunning Dennis.

[Liz]

Wow, amazingingly beautiful images Dennis. :thumbsup:

[M54]

Great photo's Dennis.
I especially like the crab.:thumbsup:

[Dennis]

Thank you for your kind words of appreciation and thoughtful comments. All are deserving of a reply, so I will try my best as follows::)


Having good gear really helps; accurate metering, responsive auto focusing and excellent lenses that are sharp when wide open, all play a big part in the success of these images.
Then there is the contribution of tools such as Photoshop and the Topaz Labs Plug-Ins that I use in my post capture processing.
Getting out each week, even if its only in the back garden, to practice on local insects and Crested Pigeons helps make me familiar with the controls and settings of the camera and lens and how to set them up for the real McCoy.
Probably the most important success factor is my wife; she has a passion for nature so we try to get out as often as we can. These joint outings provide me with the many opportunities to record the lives of these amazing creatures. She provides me with the inspiration.
Having the camera always available and set up correctly has resulted in me grabbing shots that lasted only a second or two – this is a really important point.

These are just some of the key factors that have help make these images. Being able to post them on Ice In Space also stimulates my enthusiasm, especially when they are so well received!;)

Once again – thank you for your lovely comments.:)

Cheers

Dennis

[h0ughy]

when does the coffee table book come out Dennis - lovely shots mate

[acropolite]

:bowdown: Nice set, I'll be damned if I know how you managed to get that dragonfly to stay put while you snapped; nice work Dennis.

[hotspur]

Well done Dennis,the dragonfly in fight is outstanding.

When are you going to have classes and tutorials on doing these types of images and PP.Small classes,would be a good earner for you.Look forward to signing on when classes commence-Cheers Chris

[Dennis]

Thanks David, Phil & Chris!:)

The Dragon Fly in Flight (DIF) was the single frame from over 20 where the head of the DIF and the auto focus point coincided. On the other frames, I had either a sharp tail, or wing, or the DIF was half way out of the frame or just an empty frame! These really are “chance” shots when they come off!

I think that these creatures can somehow sense when you are focusing on them; they seem to hover for a tantalising second or two, but as soon as you acquire them in the viewfinder, they instantly side slip out of view.:(

Cheers

Dennis

[Dennis]

A lovely description of avian aeronautics!:thumbsup:

Cheers

Dennis

[Dennis]

Hi Chris

The Canon 7D was set to 3 frames per second (low speed continuous shooting) and I just panned like crazy to follow the Cormorant, trying to keep the centre AF point on the birds head.

Cheers

Dennis

[Ric]

Wonderful captures Dennis.

The Soldier Crab has to be a favorite for me as well.

[multiweb]

Great shots Dennis! My fav would be the crab. :thumbsup: